New York University is committed to providing equal educational opportunity and participation for students with disabilities. The Henry and Lucy Moses Center for Students with Disabilities (Moses CSD) works with NYU students to determine appropriate and reasonable accommodations that support equal access to a world-class education.
In addition to providing support services and accommodations to NYU students in eighteen schools and colleges and thirteen study-away sites, the Moses Center has worked through the DIA platform to make great progress in addressing several key access issues at NYU over the past year, which include:
- Enhancing access to available sign-language interpreters and captioned and real time real-time translation (CART) services/providers. These facilities make NYU’s learning environment and on-campus events more inclusive to a variety of stakeholders, and expand NYU’s status as a desirable venue for visiting lecturers and other guests.
- Collaborating with NYU IT to ensure digital accessibility of the NYU website, its content and educational materials in accordance with the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, Level AA standard for digital accessibility. The Moses Center shared a staff member with NYU IT with the goal of sustaining inclusive design practice to ensure accessibility for people of varying abilities.
- Collaborating with NYU Steinhardt to manage and sustain the NYU Connections program geared toward providing support protocols for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) identifying students. The program includes weekly support meetings facilitated by Moses Center staff and bi-monthly co-hort group meetings co-coordinated by Moses and ASD Nest.
- Securing AIM academic database to provide worldwide access for NYU students, faculty and administrators. This disability services database complies with WCAG AA and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C &794d).
Alongside these successes, the Moses Center also worked with University Development to secure funding for a two-year professional staff position dedicated to the NYU Connections program.